I'll Be Waiting
by Sunsoarer
Summary: Luke and Mara really discover each other- but at what cost? Vignette.


**Disclaimer:** Song lyrics belong to The Goo Goo Dolls. Everything else (besides plot bunnies) are property of George Lucas and the SW universe. They're just my playtoys..

**I'll Be Waiting**

_

* * *

__Ecstasy is all you need  
__Living in the big machine now  
__Oh, you're so vain  
__Now your world is way too fast  
__Nothin's real and nothing lasts  
__And I'm aware_

Luke stood at the spaceport, watching his beloved Mara direct unloading droids towards her beloved ship. She had no idea- no idea at all.

_I'm in love but you don't care_

'She does care,' Luke told himself. 'You know she does. Why else would she race to all ends of the galaxy to saveyou from the bacta tank- or is it deliver you to it?'

"Mara!"

"Luke! You're on planet!"

"It _is_ Coruscant-"

He was abruptly shut up by her lithe form crashing into his, hugging him tightly- hugging him for dear life. She was shaking, and all in a moment he offered help and she accepted, her mental barriers keeping him out crashing down and laying her whole soul open to him and only him.

_Turn your anger into lust  
__I'm still here, but you don't trust at all  
__And I'll be waiting_

The past- their fights and occasional touches, and the day before she left three months ago- his all-too-brief kiss before he sent her off. She was furious, but, she had realized, only at herself. It took near death and horrible experiences to convince her of that… as well as the wise Force masters of the past.

Their dreams had been the same- wrapped up in each other, skin to skin, frenzied and passionate in Luke's simply furnished bedroom or Mara's. And as Mara began to really trust Luke, he gently opened his barriers to let her see his not-so-spotless soul, for he knew her fear was that he would not love her- could not- because of her past.

_Love and sex and loneliness  
__Take what's yours and leave the rest  
__So I'll survive  
__God, it's good to be alive_

Ten minutes later they were in Mara's apartment, Luke's arms around her as she shuddered. The former Emperor's Hand, caught, raped and nearly murdered! and she realized as her world had gone black- there was one man in the whole world she wished there with her before she died. Luke. And it was that revelation that made her fight.

Force-distress signals jerked Jedi Master Luke Skywalker out of a passionate dream of the two of them. _Mara!_ Running to his commstation, he dialed Karrde's comlink and demanded to know of her whereabouts. Karrde said only that he was on his way to help her- distress signals had been floating from her comlink, and that it would be too late if Luke tried to race halfway across the galaxy for her.

And it was Luke speaking to her through the living Force, talking her through the insanity that had tried to set in, that had kept her together until Karrde and his men had come to the rescue.

_And I'm torn in pieces  
__I'm lyin there waiting for  
__My heart is reeling  
__I'm blind and waiting for you_

Luke confessed his love; Mara confessed hers. The two of them merely held each other for a long while, listening to heartbeats in perfect rhythm as they shared all of what they felt through their ever-growing Force link.

_Silly love with all your sins  
__Wait and stop and I begin  
__And I'll - I'll be waitin'  
__Livin' like a house on fire  
__What you fear is your desire  
__It's hard to deal  
__I still love the way you feel_

_Now this angry little girl  
__Drownin in this petty world  
__And I'm who you run to  
__Swallow all your bitter pills  
__That's what makes you beautiful  
__You're all a lie  
__I won't leave what you ain't got_

Luke wanted nothing more to follow the compulsion that those memories had pushed in his mind; to scoop Mara up and never let her out of his arms until morning dawned, and maybe not even then. But her personal tragedy proved too much for even nature's pull and they slept in each other's arms, unable to do anything but be together.

_And I'm torn in pieces  
__I'm lyin there waiting for  
__My heart is reeling  
__I'm blind and waiting for you_

Mara woke in the middle of the night, screaming as she relived her horrors. Luke held her, smoothed her hair, murmured sweet nothings to her, gently kissed her forehead and did his best to reassure; trembling, she finally allowed herself to balance off of someone else, and realized it did not make her weak- but strong.

_I'm blind and waiting for you  
__I'm blind and waiting for you_

Finally the long night passed after Luke promised to protect Mara's mind from the nightmares. He sent her a gentle compulsion to sleep and erected barriers for her before letting sleep overcome himself.

Days passed; two weeks flew by and they found they could not be apart. When Luke left for a quick excursion to one or two of Coruscant's more elite stores, Mara stayed at Leia's, and for the first half-hour he was gone she paced, shaking, unable to not be near him, afraid he would never return. Han took the twins and Anakin out to do something while Leia talked to Mara, who was nearly wailing, and the redhead slowly realized that her irrational worries need not be there.

The Senator was still very wary of Luke's new relationship, unwilling to believe that there really was love between them. Han had told her over and over that the Kid had loved her for years and probably vice versa, but the headstrong woman refused to believe- until Mara put her head in her hands and let tears come, murmuring only that she loved him too much to let him go.

Then her famous resolve came back and she stood, eyes blurry from tears but strong. She repeated she loved him too much to let him go- to _ever_ let him go.

"I agree," a quiet voice came from the doorway. Mara spun and nearly flung herself into his arms; he smiled as he held her close. "I suppose you'll accept this then?"

She untangled herself from his embrace- only halfway- and gasped when she saw the ring: a beautiful emerald, flanked by two tiny diamonds, all set in gold.

_And I can't believe it's coming true_

Luke slid it on her finger when she whispered, "Yes, Luke, a thousand times yes…"

Leia bit her bottom lip, tears streaming down her face, ecstatic that finally her brother had found someone to love, and finally really believing it herself.

_God, it's good to be alive  
__I'm still here and waitin' for you_

Three days later, the two stood at their balcony, hand in hand- married. Hesitantly Luke's real left hand cupped Mara's cheek, thumb gently tracing her bottom lip, affection and love radiating from both of them for all to see. Finally, a barrier in Mara's mind that she had been fighting against broke and she kissed him for all she was worth. Luke was stunned- she had been so shocked after her ordeal that he had not pushed a thing, overjoyed that she could love _him._

He moaned against her lips, knowing he wouldn't be able to stop if this got any further, and tried to pull away. One of Mara's arms snaked around his neck, not letting him, and the other fumbled for his shirt.

'_Mara? I- we- look-'_

She broke away from his lips, panting, her own lips swollen from being thoroughly kissed. "Shut up and make love to me, Skywalker."

And thus-

those dreams came true.

_And I can't believe it's coming true  
__I'm blind and waiting for you…_

**

* * *

Author's Note**: I know that at some points this story reads _really, really_ strangely. It was kinda intentional. Please, just enjoy this. I might do more related stuff, but I tend to enjoy vignettes. And no, I'm not going to go and write a sequel or more details on Mara's trip. Sorry. Just enjoy what there is, okay? –S 

**PS:** The song is **Big Machine** by the ever-uber **Goo Goo Dolls**. I thought it was absolutely perfect for a Luke/Mara vignette due to the verses:

_Ecstasy is all you need  
__Living in the big machine now  
__Oh, you're so vain  
__Now your world is way too fast  
__Nothin's real and nothing lasts  
__And I'm aware  
__I'm in love but you don't care_

_Turn your anger into lust  
__I'm still here but you don't trust at all  
__And I'll be waiting_

And the (repeated) lines:

_And I can't believe it's coming true  
__I'm blind and waiting for you_

You people should listen to it. It's really a great song… just like most Goo Goo Dolls stuff. There's another vignette of mine- Dreamland- that has two other GGD songs in it.

I'll shut up. Now, what's that little button down to the left there? Submit Review? gasp ;)


End file.
